Dr. Robert Balfanz, Senior Research Scientist at Center for Social Organization of Schools, Johns Hopkins University and Co­Director of Everyone Graduates Center and Talent Development Secondary

Michael Johnston - Colorado State SenatorJohn Kechriotis - General Counsel, Sharpe Holdings, LLCDexter Korto -Denver Public Schools Middle School Teacher And City Year AlumnusPami Perea - Manager Of Donor And Community Relations, Colorado UpliftAnnie Proietti (Secretary), Denver Public Schools, High School Teacher Stephanie Wu - Sr. Vice President And Chief Program Design And Evaluation Officer, City Year, Inc.

BOARD LEADERSHIP

Mary Seawell - Chair, Board of Directors

Mary leads work on education initiatives, particularly in the areas of innovations in governance and delivery of public education services, rural school innovation, public policy and strategies for expanding the pipeline of excellent school leaders and teachers for the Gates Family Foundation. Mary has served previously as the Executive Director of the Sturm Family Foundation and the Judith Ann Griese Foundation. She has also served as a Director and member of the Grantmaking Committee for the Charles T. Beaird Foundation, and a board member and Chair of the Grantmaking Committee for the Chinook Fund.

From 1993 to 2003 she worked in various capacities at the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment and the Denver District Attorney’s Office. Mary also worked for Get Smart Schools developing an MBA program at the University of Denver for autonomous school leaders. Mary has served on numerous community boards including the Odyssey School, the Denver Language School, The Lab at Belmar, Bluff Lake Nature Center and Rape Assistance and Awareness Program. Mary was elected to the Denver Public Schools Board of Education in 2009 and served as its President from 2011-2013. Mary is a graduate of American University (Print Journalism and Philosophy) and has a law degree from the University of Denver College of Law. She also studied Literature at Cambridge University in Cambridge, England.

Jim Balfanz - VICE-CHAIR, BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Since 2010, Jim Balfanz has served as President of City Year, steering its continued evolution as a performance-driven organization. Balfanz led City Year’s strategic shift toward addressing the nation’s urban education challenge as a scalable human capital strategy for high-poverty schools and co-authored a 2012 City Year report, “Closing the Implementation Gap,” that highlights the critical role national service can play in helping to improve student achievement in America’s highest need schools. In partnership with Johns Hopkins Talent Development and Communities In Schools, Balfanz has also played a leadership role in the development of Diplomas Now, which was awarded a $36 million Investing in Innovation award by the Department of Education.

Prior to his role as President, Balfanz served as City Year’s Chief Operating Officer for five years during which he led the organization through a sustained period of growth that enabled it to grow from 15 to 21 U.S. locations and launch its second international affiliate in London. Balfanz began his work with City Year as a corps member at a Head Start Program in Boston in 1993, after which he joined City Year’s staff and has since assumed various roles in City Year’s National Headquarters, including Deputy Director of National Affairs, and Director of New Site Development, followed by being named the Founding Executive Director of City Year Greater Philadelphia in 1997.

Balfanz received his undergraduate degree from Northeastern University, is a graduate of the Wharton School of Business Executive management Program, and a 2011-2012 Pahara-Aspen Education Fellow. He currently serves on the boards of Mass Insight Education, Eye to Eye and City Year UK. In 2016, he was appointed to the Aspen Institute National Commission on Social, Emotional, and Academic Development as a Distinguished Educator.

Stephanie Wu- senior vice president & Chief program design and evaluation officer city year

Stephanie Wu leads the design, execution, and evaluation of City Year’s Whole School Whole Child services, which are delivered by 3,000 City Year AmeriCorps members in more than 300 schools in 27 cities nationwide. She oversaw the program research and development initiative that fueled the organization's strategic shift toward addressing the nation's urban education challenge.

During City Year’s first decade, Stephanie developed and led foundational in-school and out-of-school community youth programs. She was responsible for putting in place fundamental concepts and practices supporting City Year’s culture, ideals, and leadership techniques, which remain essential to City Year’s work in schools and communities. Stephanie is also the founder of City Year’s Summer Academy, the organization’s intensive training program for staff and senior corps.

Before taking on her current role, Stephanie supported City Year's scaling and capacity building through leadership positions across numerous City Year departments, including Co-Chief Operating Officer, Senior Vice president of U.S. Site Operations, and Senior Vice President for Human Resources. Stephanie is a graduate of Boston University and came to the organization from the private sector in 1988, serving as a founding team leader in City Year’s original summer pilot.

Over the course of her career, she has supported a variety of national service, youth development, and education organizations in the United States, UK, France, and Africa as a board member and thought partner. Stephanie played a leadership role in the design and founding of the Compass Academy charter school in Denver, where she currently serves on the founding board. Stephanie was a 2015-2016 Pahara-Aspen Education Fellow.